Jane Pire

To view the livestream of Jane's service, please click the link: https://www.youtube.com/@ryanfuneralhomemadison7477

Jane Marie Pire passed away on June 26, 2026, in her home in the presence of her family. She was born in Minot, North Dakota, on December 3, 1950, to John and Harriet Nelson. Jane was raised in the Lutheran church and maintained her faith throughout her life, always putting other people’s needs ahead of hers. She graduated from Bottineau High School in Bottineau, North Dakota, in 1969.

Jane had a son, Christopher Stephen Milbrath, and a daughter, Nichole Marie Milbrath, from her first marriage. After being a single parent for a number of years and working multiple jobs to ensure her kids had the best possible childhood, she met the love of her life while working at Hickory Farms in Minot. She married Charles Richard (Chuck/Charlie) Pire on June 1, 1985, and on July 17, 1986, they were blessed with another child, Richard John (RJ) Pire.

Chuck was an Air Force pilot, and in August 1988 Jane and family moved from Minot to Marquette, Michigan. Jane was the epitome of an Air Force wife, packing up and moving her family every couple of years, but she always made the best of it, making dozens of new friends with each move. She treated each new home as an adventure, seeking out and enjoying as much as she could in the new area.

Jane worked as a medical office scheduler and then an office manager for a number of clinics during her moves before spending 15 years at a clinic in Denver that she helped start up. She moved to Omaha, Nebraska, in 2010 and continued to work remotely until 2020. Omaha is where she really embraced her water aerobics classes and made some of her best friends, who called themselves the Mermaids.

Jane and Chuck moved to Verona, Wisconsin, in 2022, where they spent time traveling, going to water aerobics classes, and enjoying their granddaughters Harriet and Hazel.

Jane was preceded in death by her parents, John and Harriet Nelson. She is survived by her son Chris Milbrath (Longmont, CO), granddaughters Jordyn and Liz, daughter Nichole Milbrath (Grant Hopfenspirger) (Denver, CO), and RJ (Anna) Pire (Fitchburg, WI), and granddaughters Harriet and Hazel. She is also survived by her sisters Nancy (Jim) Christensen, nephews Mike and Thad, sister Dorothy Flammang, nephew Jon, and niece Kristi.

Jane succumbed to an aggressive form of leukemia. She was stricken with an infection to her immune system that within a day put her in septic shock and resulted in her being placed on life support. Being the fighter that she was and having the will to live, she beat the odds and survived it, only to be struck down again by the fact that the leukemia had spread throughout her body. At that point, we asked the hospital to release her to our care so she could come home for her final three days.

We ask that, in lieu of flowers, please donate to Blood Cancer United and pray we find a cure for all blood cancers.

A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. at Ryan Funeral Home and Legacy Center, 6728 Mader Drive, Madison. A visitation will be held at the funeral home from 11:00 a.m. until the time of service.